State budget for 2026 in limbo as Sabah Election approaches, warns Shafie

KOTA KINABALU: The State Budget for 2026 should have been passed before dissolution, says Parti Warisan president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal.

He said that prior to the Nov 6 dissolution, the state government was busy with ongoing negotiations with its federal partners from September to the present.

“Today, the budget for Sabah is RM6.7bil. Where is the money? RM500mil to repair roads. RM600mil grant from Kuala Lumpur,” he said, adding that this budget was for 2025, while there was none for 2026.

Shafie said that if, after the Nov 29 State Election, the new chief minister was most likely to be sworn in within a week, then it would take another week to form the cabinet.

“By then, it will be the end of December. Still no budget for 2026,” he said on Thursday (Nov 6).

He asked how the new government would pay salaries for civil servants and others, and how it would manage disasters and emergencies if any occurred without an approved budget.

Shafie said if the current state and federal leaders were sincere about the people of Sabah, they should have prioritised these matters.

“There is no chief minister. Only a caretaker chief minister, so if anything were to happen, he cannot instruct district officers or officials to carry out tasks,” he said.

In urging support for the party, Shafie said that if they win and form the next state government, their priority would be to assist the poorest districts first.

He said that as leaders, all people should be given the necessary aid and attention as required.

He also said that all districts should be taken care of, because leaders should not play favourites.